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Thursday, December 8, 2016

The year 2016 has been an epic year for cyber security
threats. Current projections published from a Cybersecurity Market Report
indicate that cybercrimes will only continue grow to an enormous $6 trillion in
annual losses to the world by the year 2021. Due in part to our hyper-connected
world, advances in collaboration technologies, multiple devices, and increased
use of outsourcing, hackers are seizing opportunities and becoming more
sophisticated in their attack techniques. Their quest has gone beyond stealing
data for a profit to leaking incriminating information to influence and expose
individuals and governments. However, hackers are only part of the challenge
faced. Third-parties partners also carry a potential threat to organizations as
they often have authorized access to organizations’ information and systems
with little oversight or monitoring.

Organizations that
fail to increase their security budget and make security a top priority, are
most likely to suffer the greatest financial losses. So what’s do we predict
for 2017 besides building a better offense?Here are Seclore’s Top
Six Security Predictions for 2017:

1. 2017 Will be a Historic Year for Cybersecurity Legislation Globally

Next year will be historic in terms cybersecurity legislation. We’ve already
seen the beginnings of this in 2016, and high-profile incidents such as the
breaches at the Democratic National Committee and Yahoo, and the Apple
encryption debate have further increased public awareness around the importance
of data security and privacy. The Chinese government was also recently
implicated in buying stolen national defense research related to the F-22 and
F-35 and C-17 fighter jets from a cybercriminal who hacked Lockheed Martin and
Boeing.

In India the Key Data Leaks that have Taken Place in the Recent Past –

Privileged access
breach cases

Several Indian banks
blocked and recalled more than 3.2 million debit cards, fearing fraud due to
data leakage caused by a malware infection at a third-party ATM switch used by
one of the banks

Select leakage of
boardroom conversation at India’s oldest conglomerate house

Recent corporate
espionage data leak case

The growing awareness, coupled with the government’s willingness to acknowledge
the national security risks posed by cyberattacks, makes us hopeful we’ll see
meaningful progress made in the fight to create effective cyber-legislation by
the end of 2017. This legislation will likely start with mandatory breach
notifications, which initially eliminate undisclosed (or slowly disclosed)
cyber incidents, but will eventually take the form of specific guidelines for
how citizens’ data must be protected wherever it travels or is stored.
Europe is leading the way with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
act and we expect countries to follow with similar legislation.

2017 will (hopefully) be the year global leaders finally recognize the need for
an InfoSec Geneva Convention, setting standards for what cyber-activities are
and aren’t acceptable. Holding highly confidential information hostage and
using it as black mail or manipulate elections is a whole new level of warfare.
I’ll admit, this is an optimistic prediction, considering the current
geopolitical landscape, but technology has reached the point where having clear
rules of engagement is an absolutely necessity. In fact, the idea was floated
back in 2015 by members of the House Intelligence Committee. While this may not
happen in 2017, I expect the global community will at least begin acknowledging
the catastrophic repercussions that could result from an all-out
cyberwar.

The ransomware epidemic is a reminder that the cybercrime economy is based on
the principles of capitalism. Until organizations persistently protect
information at the data level (and stop paying the ransom), these attacks won’t
slow down. And, as companies increasingly utilize third party service providers
to reduce costs, more and more information will be at risk.

In 2016, the healthcare industry was revealed to be especially vulnerable to
ransomware attacks with 75% of hospitals surveyed in a poll by Health IT News
and HIMSS to have been hit by one.
And while that will remain true next year, we expect hackers will expand into
other verticals. Hackers will look for the weakest link and exploit industries
who have highly sensitive information and lower investments in security
solutions.

Researchers say there are more than 200 ransomware families active globally,
which complicates ongoing attempts to disrupt such attacks. These attacks
sometimes only require one employee mistake to initiative, meaning it’s only a
matter of time until an overworked employee clicks the wrong link and exposes
his/her firm to a hacker looking to steal critical data.4. Organizations will
be More Stringent on the Security of Their Third-Party Vendors and
Collaboration Partners

In 2017, we can expect to see organizations placing stricter compliance
regulations on their third-party outsource vendors and other external
collaboration partners. Third-parties such as advisors, vendors,
sub-contractors and business partners pose a huge risk to organizations because
they require access to systems and data to conduct business, yet there is no
accountability in the way they handle a company’s data.Besides unsecured
systems, there is also the issue of sub-contractors stealing intellectual
property. 67% of independent contractors and employees take IP with them for
the express purpose of leveraging it at a new position, costing organizations
more than $400 billion in annual loses. With on-going pressure to achieve
profits, organizations will become ever more reliant on third-party vendors and
processing partners in 2017. However, profitability can no longer trump
security when it comes to collaboration.

5. InfoSec Teams Will Give Up On Perimeter Security, and Instead Adopt a
Data-Centric Approach

Data is flowing through and outside of organizations at an unprecedented speed,
and it will only continue to accelerate in 2017, especially with the growing
adoption of outsourcing, a global/mobile workforce, and the use of innovative
(but perhaps non-IT sanctioned) technologies such as Enterprise File Synch and
Share (EFSS). These trends mean that the security of the infrastructure and the
devices that are storing sensitive data become far less important, as
information is likely present on multiple systems/devices and shared via
numerous routes, many of which lead outside the traditional corporate
perimeter.

The free flow of information will warrant a paradigm shift in the InfoSecurity
community, who will be unable to assure the security of data as it moves across
and outside of corporate boundaries. Instead, the InfoSecurity teams will shift
their focus to securing the data itself, striving to achieve persistent
security through solutions that control granular usage policies regardless of
where the information resides.

6. Data-Centric Security Solutions Will Become an InfoSecurity Fundamental,
Joining the Ranks of Anti-Virus and Firewall Technologies

The value offered by firewalls and anti-virus solutions has been on the
decline. We predict that 2017 will be the year that organizations acknowledge the
need to secure the data itself, and not just infrastructure and devices. The
shift to persistent data-centric has already begun with Enterprise Digital
Rights Management (EDRM) capabilities as a key requirement in their Enterprise
File Synch and Share (EFSS). In fact, a number of vendors have already jumped
on the data-centric security trend in 2016, with Citrix and IBM adding Rights
Management features to their EFSS and Enterprise Content Management (ECM)
offerings. You can expect more vendors to follow suit in 2017. And I’d be
surprised if any of the major EFSS, CASB (Cloud Access Security Broker) and
Virtual Data Room (VDR) vendors hadn’t integrated EDRM capabilities with their
offerings by the end of next year.

For the organization itself, 2017 will be the year that Rights Management
becomes part of an overall data-centric security infrastructure, seamlessly
integrating with the organization’s ERP, EFSS, ECM, Data Loss Prevention, Data
Classification and SIEM solutions to provide automatic protection (and
auditing) of information as it is downloaded, discovered and shared.

On its way to complete two billion transactions this year
surpassing its own expectations, Digital payments platform Paytm said it aims
to become universal payments app across every bank account.

The company also said it aspires to enter the US
market in the long run as it sees an opportunity there.

"Today Paytm is on the way to complete 2
billion transactions this year. I personally did not expect 2016 to end on such
number. Our numbers are at 2 billion transactions this year, which in turn will
enable us to become really the transaction layer on top of every bank
account," said Paytm Founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma told reporters
here.

"With connectivity with the UPI (Unified
Payment Interface) we will become the payment app for every bank account. With
UPI support Paytm is staking to become the payment layer on top of bank account
out there," he added.

Noting that at the time when banks are launching
UPI app, there are consumer experience concerns, Sharma said while banks are
busy with rupee demonetisation and rupee disbursement process, there is need
and demand for "incredibly" built UPI app that can work across all
banks.

"Paytm wants to actually become the
universal payments app across every bank account that exists there with
partnership UPI. Yes, we (Paytm) will one day go to the US and I say this very
clearly we will do. We will hit them in their own market. That is what the
aspiration is," he said.

Responding to a question on launching payment
bank, the CEO said, "We are working at it," and added that
obligatorily "we will have to do it before March 2017 as our licence
obligates us to launch by then."

He said the missing of earlier deadlines was due
to multiple factors such as taking a step towards full blown CPS (Core Banking
Software) instead of a small one, and also because the funding took time.

Paytm announced it has introduced a new ‘App Password’ feature
on its Android mobile app. This will enable Paytm users to set a secure Pin,
Password, Pattern or Fingerprint as a means to ensure money stored in
the Paytm wallet remains safe even if
the owner’s phone is lost or misplaced.

This App password feature
is currently available in the latest Android App. Users can set their phone’s
default Android security password by using the ‘Security’ option in the
‘Settings’ menu. They can then select a Pin, Password, Pattern
or Fingerprint to protect their phone. Once the user clicks on ‘Pay’ or
‘Passbook’ on the updated
Paytm App after setting a password, they will be prompted to enable
this optional feature. Once they click on the ‘Add Security’ option,
they will be asked to reconfirm their phone’s password, and their new App
Password will be set. Users can also choose to disable this security
mechanism by switching off the ‘Android Security’ feature in the ‘Security
& Settings’ menu in their Android app.

Speaking on the launch, Deepak Abbot, Senior Vice
President – Paytm said, “The security of our customer’s money is of
utmost importance to us. The launch of
the new App Password feature is yet another step in that direction as your
Paytm Wallet is protected even if you lose or misplace your phone. This
will not only offer greater peace of mind to our 164 million strong user-base,
but also serve as a showcase of our unmatched commitment to our customers.”

Currently over a million offline merchants across India accept
Paytm as their preferred payment mode. Paytm is accepted everywhere
including taxis, autos, petrol pumps, grocery shops, restaurants, coffee shops,
multiplexes, parking, pharmacies, hospitals, kirana shops and many
more. With its assertive focus on mobile payments, the company is inching
closer to its aim of making cashless transactions a way of life across India.

Hannover Milano Fairs India Pvt Ltd (HMFI), has kick started the
3rd edition of their leading trade fair, CeBIT India 2016 at Bangalore
International Exhibition Centre (BIEC) in Bengaluru, India. The theme for this
year is - Discover the Business of Technology Innovation! See how
collaborative disruption is changing tomorrow’s innovation. The
show saw a conglomeration of global and domestic exhibitors, consultants,
business experts and key government officials on one platform to explore latest
technologies and new products. Day one’s sessions at the CeBIT Global
Conferences consisted of speakerships and discussions on opportunities afforded
by a Digitization with a generous amount of focus on collaborative disruption
and technological innovation. CeBIT this year had participation from 400 brands
|191 exhibitors | 70 speakers | 2 stages held over three days.

The inaugural ceremony of CeBIT India was honored by eminent
guests, Prof. Dinesh Singh, Ex. Vice Chancellor, Delhi University along
with Hrishikesh Nair CEO Technopark & Infopark State Government of Kerala.
Prof . Dinesh Singh who gave the opening keynote on ‘Collaborative
Disruptions in creating future ready workforce in India’. He emphasized that
India is moving at a rapid pace of digitization with fast evolving social and
digital tools. Digital disruption of work and workforces are continuously
evolving by breaking down traditional boundaries, enriching and augmenting
human capability and creating work opportunities.

“Basis the immense success we have witnessed and the overall
feedback received from the attendees over the previous two years, we are
delighted to bring this year’s CeBIT for the third year. We can expect the
Indian IT and the ICT landscape gaining ground through remarkable technological
advances bound to get even bigger in the coming year. There are plenty of
exciting prospects for enterprises to undertake and stay ahead in their
respective businesses. Digitisation has entered with a storm, there is no
option for the companies but to keep pace with this change.” said Mehul
Lanvers-Shah, Managing Director, Hannover Milano Fairs India Pvt. Ltd. He
further added, “With the consistent support from various government
organisations, participation of IT companies and introduction of theIoT
Hackathon, which is aimed to be the centre of attention for 2016, we
anticipate the show this year to gain a bigger momentum. There is no dearth of
talent in India and at CeBIT we help in supporting this pool of untapped
potential”

“Over the years CeBit has been at the cutting edge of
revolutionary ideas. There are few things that push the boundaries of
innovation as much as the TeamIndus Moon Mission.. We are delighted to be part
of CeBIT this year and to take everyone on board our exciting journey to the
Moon” added Dilip Chabria – Jedi Master, Business Development,
TeamIndus.

Prashant Mamtora, CEO
Milople Technologies Pvt. Ltd “This is the second time that we are participating in
CeBIT with very high expectations from the show. We have seen tremendous
support from the visitors, customers and it provides a plethora of
opportunities both globally and within the country.”

Companies come together to encourage startups

The occasion also marked the launch of the IoT Hackathon,
a 24 hour hackathon for developers, programmers and coders to find and develop
solutions in the space of Social Innovation; Internet of Things; Cloud; Mobile and
4G and Virtual Reality. The hackathon will serve as a platform for knowledge
sharing and networking. CeBIT India along with Intel, Bosh and VentureSity,
Digital Ocean, Reliance Jio is jointly organizing the IoT Hackathon for
promoting the developer community. This 24 hour affair will give encouragement
to the participants as they showcase new technologies to the honchos of the
industry.

Continued support from government bodies

CeBIT India in its third edition, have received unswerving
support from the trade bodies as STPI reiterates its association for digital
inclusion of upcountry locations, along with Ministry of Electronics and
Information Technology, MeITY (formerly known as DeITY). This association will
identify top 100 MSMEs in driving growth of the Indian manufacturing and ESDM
sector, and enabling the Indian Government’s focus on digitalized economy.

Wednesday, December 7, 2016

Hyperloop
Transportation Technologies (HTT), a US startup to revolutionize travel. — is
the brainchild of Tesla founder Elon Musk, who opensourced the basic design in
2013 in the form of a white paper. Bibop Gresta, chairman of HTT post his
talks with the Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari is looking for talks with
Karnataka’s chief minister to sell the concept of hyperloop in the state.

Addressing
a session on Leapfrogging Legacy: Hyperloop with Vishal Gondal, founder and CEO
of GOQii at the Carnegie India Global Technology Summit 2016, Gresta says, “The
concept of trains and metro are now legacy technologies and the way forward
is the hyperloop, wherein people can travel from Chennai to Bengaluru in 30
minutes — for a fraction of the cost of an airplane ticket.”

I came to India a few months ago and met
transport minister Nitin Gadkari. We have a proposal on the table to run
Hyperloop between Mumbai and Pune, he said.He goes on to say that it takes 6-8 months to do the feasibility study,
and 38 months to set it up, from the date we get all approvals. We don't want
government money. We only need the land and approvals. We will get private
investors to build the system. Several Indian investors have already expressed
interest, says Gresta.

I read
about the challenges of reaching the airport in Bangalore and it would be ideal
for the state government to look at hyperloop technology to play a major role
provided all end-to-end tasks are met, he said. "This tech takes less space and
no destruction to the environment".

Post his meeting with the minister,
Gresta said he found the Indian government very interested. “If they put their
money where their mouth is then we could see very quickly a hyperloop in this
country.” The company has already signed deals to build a hyperloop between Abu
Dhabi and Al Ain in the UAE.

The Indian government has been focussed on
improving the infrastructure in the country. PM Narendra Modi, in particular,
has talked about bringing bullet trains to India.

The
first bullet train is expected to run between Mumbai and Ahmedabad and is
expected to be built by 2023 at a cost of about $12 billion. But Gresta thinks
bullet trains pale in comparison to the hyperloop system.

He said bullet
trains would be a big mistake for India. India has the potential to really
embrace new technologies. Put $1 billion in hyperloop. And you have a faster,
more efficient way to transport people.

HTT
uses a crowd-collaboration approach by roping in about 800 engineers and
companies who are working for stock options. There are about 25 people from
India working on the technology, Gresta said.

The hyperloop
will run on renewable energy. There will be solar panels on the top of the tube,
wind turbines in the pylons and will generate more energy than we need,” he
adds.

Addressing entrepreneurs,
policymakers, technologists, and academics today at the Carnegie India Global
Technology Summit in Bengaluru, Dr. S. Jaishankar underscored the need to
harness the power of technological change for faster economic development. “A
world of greater digitalization and innovation awaits us,” the Foreign
Secretary declared.

Dr. Jaishankar stated that “the last
decade has been about freeing up the economy. We cannot underestimate its
significance. However, it became clear as years passed that we have fallen
short in our transition to an industrial economy. We haven’t overcome our
limitations of manufacturing capacity. Further, the attitude changes that come
with it haven't been internalized,” professed the Foreign Secretary.

“There are also some singular points in India’s endeavor. The
fact that such changes are being brought about in a democratic framework, and
in a pluralistic social environment. This is more evolutionary and painstaking
approach,” the Foreign Secretary said.

Dr. Jaishankar stated that “the government has made a concerted
effort to attract tech and best practices from abroad. Often external elements
provided the catalytic elements. In India, there is a difference. Our stability
is higher, our path is steadier. We can contemplate many transformative
initiatives as coming from within.”

Dr. Jaishankar affirmed that
“engagement must take many forms: global partnerships, regime memberships,
promotional initiatives. Examples include the India-US nuclear understanding,
and more recently a similar understanding with Japan. Membership in the NSG and
Wassenaar are natural projections. The focus of our diplomacy on the solar
alliance, the high-speed rail with Japan, speaks volumes of our changed
thinking.”

“Technology is a key driver of
economic and social development. Sharp changes in technology shifts balances in
power. If India is to emerge as a truly leading power in the world, it can do
so only when its human resources are brought into full play,” said Dr.
Jaishankar.

Dr. Jaishankar emphasized that “we
require rapid efforts to improve skilling at various levels. Taking that into
technology and innovation calls not just for higher levels of commitment but
also greater imagination and more commercialization. This is an area where we
can leverage global interest, as the world itself has an itself has an interest
in diversifying. There is a strong cultural element to how we work and how we
think, and partnerships with countries like Japan and Germany are more likely
to be successful if they factor in languages and skills.”

“A world of greater digitalization and innovation awaits us. Our value
proposition to the world will also transform itself. The future lies in opening
it up for the tech industry, with more branding and commercialization. This is
how Indian technology can make its presence felt. The technology community
should think bigger and aim higher,” asserted the Foreign
Secretary.

Virtual reality
technology to take tourists on a spectacular walk down memory lane

The world famous
religious and historic city of Amritsar that is known for its martyrs of Jallianwala
Baugh and the Golden Temple will soon have another addition to its many
wonders. The historic Fort Gobindgadh is all set for a touch of digitisation
and virtual reality technology which will bring alive its rich heritage and
tales of bravery. This venture is the undertaking of Actress and director Deepa
Sahi through her company Maya Digital in a 15 year public private partnership
with the Government of Punjab.

A blue print of
the legacy of the fort has been prepared by her team and stories and displays
in the fort will bear witness to the erstwhile grandeur and rich vein of
culture that Amritsar was known for. The initial phase of the project
will see half a portion of the fort being made open to the public from the 13th of December 2016.

Commenting on the
project Deepa Sahi said, “Being a Punjabi I always wanted to do something to
promote the varied culture of Punjab. I was working on a historic project when
I got to know that Punjab Government is planning to do something about the
legacy of Fort Gobingadh. When I realized that, I made a proposal to the Punjab
Government and received a positive response following which I began working on
the project. We have used many latest technologies to display the rich history
of the Fort and its erstwhile rulers and I am sure people will like it. It is
my dream that we have more tales to tell of India and wonders to talk about
other than just the TajMahal.”

The idea came from the
fact that today museums are just mute displays of artefacts and antiquities
which are not the best testimonies to educate the youth. Generally in a museum
we find clothes of the soldiers, their arms and ammunitions displayed which no
longer excites the young mind. This project will look to make history alive and
engaging using modern technology and virtual reality.

Visitors will take a
plunge into history with the assistance of modern technology. In addition to
the displays and shows, there will be a whole host of stalls, which will focus
largely on Punjabi handicraft, arts and Punjabi food stalls along with cuisines
of the royalty at that period. A special 3D Stereoscopic show on King Ranjeet
Singh and his soldiers will also be aired in addition to multimedia shows on
the history of Amritsar.

Virtual songs and
dances of the time will also be presented, and as these shows are targeting
today’s generation there will be new generation artists who will also perform
and showcase their talent. In the second phase there will be amusement park for
children, luxury tinted themes and children’s park that will be made with
modern techniques.

In line with its
strategy to catalyze shift from offline to online and keeping the recent
development (demonetization) in consideration, MakeMyTrip, India’s leading
travel company today launched a special cashless travel sale ‘The Cashless
Travel Carnival’.The sale, scheduled to be held from Tuesday, 06
December 2016 – Thursday, 08 December 2016, focuses on the upcoming high travel
season and provides jaw-dropping offers and attractive discounts across
flights, hotels and holiday packages across platforms – desktop, mobile app and
m-site. With the aim to provide the widest range of travel options at best
prices, MakeMyTrip has partnered with Axis Bank and Citibank as exclusive
banking partners for this event

Commenting on the launch of the
sale, Rajesh Magow, Co-Founder and CEO-India, MakeMyTrip said, “As
a company we have been focused on driving customers to shift from offline to online
for their travel bookings. In line with the recent demonetization drive, we
have designed this three-day long event to help customers realize the benefits
and convenience associated with making bookings online. We are thankful to all
our partners joining us in rolling out this mega travel carnival.

He further added, “With over
27.5 million downloads till date, our app is the most widely used travel app in
India and we are strongly focused on strengthening our mobile technology and
have been constantly enhancing our systems to offer a seamless booking
experience to our customers.We look forward to a positive
response and constructive feedback from our customers.”

Given the underpenetrated and fragmented
nature of online accommodation segment in the country especially hotels where
online penetration currently stands at around 14%, The Cashless Travel Carnival
offers lucrative deals on online bookings panning a wide range of hotel
properties across the country.

Global cybersecurity
leader Forcepoint has announced Meerah Rajavel joins the company as its new
chief information officer (CIO). A member of the executive leadership team, Rajavel
will guide Forcepoint’s technology and infrastructure strategy, lead the global
information technology organization and play a central role in extending
Forcepoint’s delivery of cloud-based cybersecurity capabilities to customers
worldwide.

Rajavel is based in
Forcepoint’s Austin, Texas headquarters and reports to Matthew Moynahan, chief
executive officer.

“Forcepoint is
building a truly transformative cybersecurity company. A key component of this
is bringing on executive talent who can help lead the execution of our
technology and infrastructure vision,” said Moynahan. “Meerah’s deep
understanding of IT infrastructure, cybersecurity and cloud, along with her
experience working at the executive level to drive company strategy, provides
Forcepoint a real competitive advantage. I’m excited to welcome her as the
newest member of the Forcepoint executive team.”

“Forcepoint has an
ambitious vision; it’s one that cannot be achieved without the right long-term
strategy to build world-class
IT infrastructure, along with the people and processes to support it,” said
Rajavel. “I’m looking forward to helping the company leverage IT as a strategic
enabler, and to help Forcepoint deliver the very best in cybersecurity
technology to our customers.”

Rajavel brings more
than 25 years of experience in information technology to Forcepoint. Most
recently, she was the CIO at Qlik, a visual analytics company, where she led
efforts to build an IT and operational excellence strategy to support rapid
growth on a global scale. Before joining Qlik, Rajavel led IT cloud services
for all McAfee products at Intel Security. Earlier in her career, she held IT
leadership, research & development and product development roles at Cisco
Systems, Infosys, Nortel, Cybersource and Solix. Rajavel holds a Bachelor in Computer Science and Engineering
from Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai, India. She also holds a
Master of Business Administration from the Leavey School of Business, Santa
Clara University, California.

Improving
car sales suggests strong potential for growth in electric vehicle (EV) sales
in China and the U.S. However, a combination of technological, economic and
political factors, including the influence of more planned mass-market EV
introductions over the next four years, could provide car-makers with nine
additional growth markets to invest in, according to new research from
Accenture.Accenture analyzed 14 domestic markets, Brazil,
Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia,
South Korea, Sweden, United Kingdom, and the United States, to pinpoint the
crucial distinctions that shape EV market attractiveness.China and the U.S. ranked as Best-in-Class
countries because they show both high EV market size and EV market growth.
Accenture believes automakers should target China and the U.S. for investment
in stronger distribution networks for EVs, while adapting product portfolios to
cater to specific customer preferences in each country. Factors in their high
ranking include the future volume of buyers who will be able to afford EVs and
the development of an extensive charging infrastructure.All of the markets were analyzed for local
factors including governmental regulations and subsidies, as well as
non-market-specific factors, such as vehicle range and charge time, then placed
into a matrix. “In the markets that show growth potential for
EVs automakers need to be ready to tap the expected growth in demand to ensure
that they reach critical mass when the growth in demand is kicking off,” said
Christina Raab, managing director in Accenture’s Automotive practice. “Plans
for an assortment of more affordable EVs with greater range aimed at the
mass-market segment are moving EVs toward higher volume car-buying. Given this
development, accessing EV-market attractiveness for each market individually
will be essential for automakers as they plan for the growing differences
between domestic markets.”

Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the
Netherlands, Norway, South Korea, Sweden and the United Kingdom are all ranked
as High Potentials for their high growth prospects between now and 2020, but a
low EV market size currently. They are typified by government plans to invest
significantly to make EVs more attractive.

As these markets may see significant growth over
the next four years, Accenture believes automakers should invest in them to
ensure that they are best placed to tap the expected market growth. While the
market share of EVs as a percentage of the global automotive market in 2015 was
only 0.3 percent, or 270,000 EV cars, an increase to just three percent would
equate to 2.7 million EVs. This excludes figures for plug-in hybrid electric
vehicles. It means that, for example in the current market environment of
France, manufacturers should quickly make use of existing governmental measures
to support EV purchases. OEMs should consider targeting all of those countries
where governmental support and subsidies exist as a priority, before these
measures are removed.The three markets of Brazil, India and Russia
are classed as Hesitators by Accenture due to the small market size and an
expected low growth rate. These markets are characterized by a lack of public
charging infrastructure and low fuel prices, which have been constantly low in
the respective markets, independent of current low oil prices. This combination
makes EVs economically unattractive. For these markets, Accenture believes OEMs
should not yet make significant investments, but they should be regularly
reevaluated. This is because they will require high investment for a range of
new capabilities such as dedicated sales staff training and aftersales
enablement once they begin to see demand take off.“Our research shows that automakers must
carefully channel overall EV investments toward the right country markets,
using total unit market size as an indicator of market attractiveness,” said
Raab. “What is clear is that government policy can rapidly change the rules of
the game, more than any other factor. For example, China has set targets for EV
and plug-in hybrids to make up seven percent of total car sales in 2020 and 40
percent in 2030, reaching an estimated 15.2 million units. In parallel, China
is hoping to see breakthroughs in battery and motor technology, while planning
to build a nationwide charging network.“Car-makers must keep a close eye on how
government agendas can potentially open the way for an increase in EV demand –
especially at a time when the industry seems to be reaching a tipping point
toward mass-market EVs,” she adds.

Rolls-Royce has signed a Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) with Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University (RGNAU) to build future
competencies required by the Indian aviation industry. The signing ceremony
took place as part of the Visitor’s Conference at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in the
presence of President Pranab Mukherjee, the Vice Chancellor of Rajiv
Gandhi National Aviation University - Air Vice Marshall Nalin Kumar Tandon
AVSM, VM (Retd.) and Kishore Jayaraman, President – India and South Asia,
Rolls-Royce.

RGNAU was set up to facilitate and promote aviation
studies and research. It will start functioning soon at Fursatganj in UP.As
India's first aviation university, the university will commence training ofaerospace/rocket engineers, aspiring pilots,Aircraft Maintenance Technicians/engineersand cabin/ground crew. The MoU outlines how Rolls-Royce will support RGNAU
to help develop curricula and offer international experts for guest lectures to
help the maturity of the university. Rolls-Royce will also offer internship
positions to qualified students across Rolls-Royce sites in India.

According to IATA, India is expected to be the third
largest aviation market with 278 million passengers by 2026.Kishore Jayaraman, President –
India and South Asia, Rolls-Royce explains what this means to India in terms of
skills development to ensure self-sufficiency:

“India’s aviation sector currently supports 8 million
jobs, and with the burgeoning aviation industry, we need to ensure a steady
pipeline of highly skilled talent. Rolls-Royce is committed to work with
academic institutions to help provide students with ready-employable skills. As
such, we are proud to collaborate with RGNAU in pursuit of this objective.
Through this collaboration, we will continue to play an integral role in the
development of India’s aerospace ecosystem.”

According to Air Vice Marshal Nalin Kumar Tandon, Vice
Chancellor, Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University, “Rajiv Gandhi National
Aviation University considers the partnership with Rolls-Royce – a world-class
player in the aerospace industry to be a watershed moment in its endeavour to
offer world class aviation education in India. This partnership will help our
faculty and students develop the most appropriate skills they will need in the
aviation industry by gaining access to the global technical experts.”

Microsoft Accelerator, a global
program built to empower startupsand Wipro
Limited, a leading information technology, consulting and
business process services company have entered into a partnership that will provide
startups with greater opportunities to innovate and grow their business. This announcement was made at the accelerator’s
flagship event - Think Next 2016 that
brings together thought leaders who are driving transformation via innovation.
Think Next 2016 also marked the graduation of 13 startups from its ninth cohort.

13
startups, Whodat, Betaout, MovenSync, Transaction Analysts, AllizHealth, Uncanny Vision, Meddiff, FarEye, Epictions, Germin8, Talview, Faircent and Surukam, graduated from the
accelerator’s ninth cohort and were introduced to an audience of more than 550 corporates, investors, thought leaders, and
Microsoft management who partnered to push the collaborative innovation. Almost all these are backing on advanced technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Internet of Things (IoT) to scale up.

This partnership is part of Microsoft Accelerator
#CoInnovate program which provides startups with more go-to-market (GTM)
opportunities by working with enterprise businesses. Wipro will also refer
select startups for Microsoft Accelerator programs and events. Under the
partnership, referred startups will gain access to Wipro Open Innovation initiatives, such as:

·Global GTM reach to
rapidly build scale

·An opportunity to
integrate their solutions with select Wipro solutions

·Wipro will help take the startups solutions to its
global customer base

·Targeted Wipro
marketing support for proactive business opportunities, among others

Wipro’s Open Innovation philosophy strives
to bring together and partner with key stakeholders such as
startups, academia, expert networks,
Venture Capitalists, Incubators/Accelerators and Technology Consortia in
the external ecosystem in order
to deliver business value to Wipro, its
partners and customers.

“Microsoft
Accelerator #CoInnovate program bridges the gap between corporates and
startups. Connecting startups to corporates and crafting a win-win relationship
is a critical need of the ecosystem today. The partnership with Wipro allows us
to leverage our combined strengths and market reach to provide a whole new
level of market access for our startups.” said Bala Girisaballa,
CEO-In-Residence, Microsoft Accelerator. Bala mentioned that many of the
portfolio startups, including CustomerXPS, CloudCherry, Zing HR, Altizon System
and iBOT
have seen great traction from Microsoft’s ISV Program and the accelerator’s
corporate partnerships.

Commenting on the alliance, K.R. Sanjiv, Chief Technology Officer,
Wipro Limited said, “Wipro has built strong connects in the global startup
ecosystem, over the last three years, as part of our focus on building new open
innovation capabilities. We are confident that our partnership with Microsoft
Accelerator will be an important enabler in developing critical solutions for
our customers, harnessing both the innovation taking place within Wipro
and the external ecosystem.”

Through
this partnership, enterprises stand to gain from access to the innovative
technology solutions emerging from some of the best technology startups in the
country. In addition, they will get a robust technology solution backed by the
reliable delivery and support platform provided by Microsoft and Wipro.

The
event also had Microsoft leaders, Judson Althoff (Executive Vice President,
Worldwide Commercial Business, Microsoft Corporation) and Tzahi ‘Zack’Weisfeld (General Manager,
Microsoft Accelerator) addressing the audience on developments in the global
technology and startup ecosystem. At the Think
Next Panel - Transforming Tomorrow
Together, Althoff, along with Aftab
Mathur (Director, Temasek) and K.R. Sanjiv (Senior Vice President and Chief
Technology Officer, Wipro Limited) and Balaji Suryanarayana (Co-founder,
CustomerXPS) discussed the significance of enterprise-startup partnerships in
the process of digital transformation. Microsoft also hosted the third edition
of ‘All India Accelerators & Incubators Meet’ bringing together 35+ accelerators and
incubation partners to drive greater impact to enable and empower the startups.

At the Think Next Panel, an impressive panel
of speakers - Sharad Sharma from industry think tank iSPIRT, VCs Shekhar
Kirani, (Accel Partners) and Samir Kumar (Inventus Capital), serial
entrepreneur, K Ganesh, and Microsoft Accelerator alum, Aditya Sood, Sr.
Director Engineering and Products, Nutanix deliberated on one of the most
critical questions in the startup ecosystem – Why Go Global? and talked about the potential of India as a market
for growth. Before the main event, Microsoft presented a highly curated set of
startups to a select audience of investors, CMOs and Ecommerce businesses in a
VC Speed Dating and two Market Access Programs.

Bala
also mentioned that Microsoft Accelerator is currently accepting applications
for its 10th cohort,
which is scheduled to start in February 2017.